Voters Register: NDC raises further concerns, but accepts EC’s pledge to release updated version

The NDC has raised significant concerns about the 2024 Provisional Voters’ Register following a special Inter-Party Advisory Committee (IPAC) meeting held on October 1, 2024.

According to the party, these concerns were largely based on several key admissions made by the Electoral Commission (EC) during the meeting.

In a press statement, the NDC’s Functional Executive Committee (FEC) outlined critical issues identified by the EC. Among these was the illegal transfer of voters due to the absence of “liveliness test” technology, with incidents reported in Pusiga and other constituencies. The NDC also highlighted the erroneous addition of previous voter transfers to the 2024 transfer list as another point of concern.

Additionally, the party noted that the EC acknowledged the presence of corrupted files in the provisional voters’ register, which it claimed had been rectified. The EC also admitted that certain voters had been mistakenly deleted from the register and would be placed on a “Missing Voters Register.” Furthermore, the NDC expressed alarm over the vulnerabilities in the EC’s IT system, which the party said could be exploited by both internal and external actors, potentially compromising the register’s integrity.

Despite these issues, the NDC has accepted the EC’s commitment to release a corrected and updated version of the voters’ register for scrutiny within one week. “FEC further welcomes the decision by the Electoral Commission to re-exhibit the updated Provisional Voters’ Register,” the statement noted.

The NDC also called for the re-exhibition exercise to be conducted both online and at physical exhibition centres to ensure wider public access and greater transparency.

Moreover, the NDC demanded a multi-stakeholder review of the EC’s IT system, emphasising the need to address vulnerabilities that could jeopardise the credibility of the December 7, 2024 general elections. “Clearly, the vulnerabilities in the IT system of the Electoral Commission can be exploited by criminals to compromise the integrity of the December 7, 2024, elections if not addressed,” the party warned